26 June 2010

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer is proving Twain's adage that "A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is still putting on its shoes."

The governor recently stated that most illegal immigrants are drug mules. Of course that's not true. The Border Patrol knows it's not true. Anyone living in a border town knows it's not true. Anyone who actually studies the issue will know its not true. So why would Brewer just blatantly lie? Why would she say something she knows to be untrue, something that can easily be disproved, and more perplexing, why would she continue to repeat it?

Because she isn't trying to win over intelligent thoughtful people. She is trying to win over those folks who skim headlines looking for "facts" that support whatever position they are trying to prop up...those people who are scared of anyone different and look for "facts" to support their fears.

At the signing of SB 1070 Brewer said that "border violence and crime due to illegal immigration are critically important issues to the people of our state." I am sure that they important issues to her constituents, but I wonder why the governor didnt get around to pointing out that violent crimes dropped in AZ between 2005 and 2008 despite the large growth in the population (up by 600,000)? Why didnt she mention that more than 50 years of non-partisan research on illegal immigration shows that immigrants are less likely to commit crimes than those who are native born?

Why tell the truth when you can lie? By the time the truth has leaked out there's oil spweing into the gulf, another anti-gay politician has been outed, and the citizens of Arizona have roundly accepted their new laws.

24 May 2010

There is something wrong with archaeologists. Maybe its the National Register criterion that's the problem. All i know is that archaeologists will not, for the life of them, make a determination of eligibility regarding a site. Its like a fuse in their brains blow in the process of writing their reports and the only words they are able to use are "probably" "likely" "might be" "could be" etc. Makes me want to blow my brains out.

I'm an archaeologist and I have had coworkers/bosses try to talk me out of an "eligible" or "not eligible" determination. Its one thing to argue for one or the other designation but to argue for "possibly"....mind boggling. Of course no one wants to be the one to agree to the destruction of a lithic scatter which later turns out to be a pre-clovis camp, but honestly, does that ever happen? No.

It could be that criteria D is so vague, asking for a determination on a site that may be likely to yield information important in prehistory or history. How can you really know with shovel tests or a couple 1x1's. I understand the idea that you need to test more to be absolutely certain but i cant imagine that anyone thought criteria D would lead to every single site being called "possibly eligible". At some point aren't we being asked to use our education, experience and judgment to decide one way or another?

This wishy-washy determination makes for a sticky wicket when it comes to ICRMPS, PAs, MOAs. (I'm folksy and possibly British!)

12 May 2010

I had a particularly annoying day at work. It was fueled by small mistakes made by various coworkers. The devil's in the details.

Certainly I have made similar mistakes, nothing serious, but the cluster of them today led me to the edge of insanity. Thank god for early hockey games.

One of my bigger frustrations stems from the fact that since my small company has been eaten by a bigger company we no longer have local admin privileges. Again, a small thing, but one that prevents me from downloading scanner software or freeware programs I use for work. This rule is in place because some people in the big company are unable to get their work done without downloading Barbie's Hair Salon (a real program), or some other stupid time wasting/pirated program.

The whole world is full of these laws and rules that we make for the 1% of the population that screws up. Rather than ask managers to actually manage, rather than holding people accountable, we stymie the 99% doing it right.

You see this in every aspect of our lives, even down to the warnings not to put animals in the microwave, because you know there is that 1%....

I do understand that my company needs to manage their licensing because they are liable and that people pick up viruses and they need to protect themselves.

Maybe my real problem is people. Was there or will there ever be a time when you can actually count on humans to not abuse and misuse whatever is handed to them?

...my little aggravation about work turns into my disappointment with all of humanity...

10 May 2010

I miss blogging. I had a hectic year and really felt that I didnt want to share anything but I am missing the act of writing, even if it is just blather on a page that no one reads. Im going to start up the blog again, maybe with more creative writing. I am sure all of my regular readers are gone. I know that blogs have kind of died in popularity as well. Especially these crappy personal blogs. No matter though, i usually wrote for myself anyway.